A weekend jet ski collision along the Colorado River killed a 58-year-old Washington state woman, San Bernardino County coroner’s officials say.

Deanna Loy Lewis died at a hospital less than an hour after the 12:40 p.m. accident Saturday, Sept. 22, about a mile south of Jack Smith Park. She was a resident of Mead, Washington.

Lewis and a companion had stopped to wait for other members of their party and were drifting south when Lewis was struck by another personal water craft, knocking her into the river, coroner’s officials said in a written statement.

A doctor aboard a passing boat stopped to help, and Lewis was taken to Colorado River Medical Center where she died at 1:31 p.m.

The sheriff’s Marine Enforcement Unit is investigating the incident.

Boating Accident Personal Injury and Wrongful Death Liability

The most common boating accidents are collisions with other boats, sinking’s, capsizing and boat disappearances.

Boating accidents occur very quickly and in many different places.  Lakes, canals, rivers, inter-coastal waterways and oceans are where tragedies normally occur.  Last year in California, there were 744 boating accidents involving 439 injuries and 44 fatalities.

According to the United States Coast Guard each year there are more than 8,000 boating accidents in the U.S. that result in 4,000 serious injuries and 800 deaths.

Many times a boater will have been speeding or may have had too much alcohol.

There are specific boating laws that must be followed or fatalities can occur.  The Law Offices of Gary A Kessler is familiar with the different state’s boating laws.  We know the boating liability issues and will inform you of your true state, local and Federal boating rights and legal options which will result in successful outcome in your case.

It is a general rule of law that the operator of a boat and its owner has a duty to exercise a reasonable degree of care in order to prevent injuries to others.  The most common boating accidents are collisions with other boats, sinking and boat disappearance.  Boating injuries usually occur because of a reckless or careless operator, alcohol, boat malfunctions or an inexperienced boating (captain) operator.

Operators of boats have a legal obligation to operate their watercraft in a safe and prudent manner.  The overwhelming majority of boating accidents are caused by factors that can be controlled by the operator of the boat.  The primary cause of boating accidents nationwide was operator inattention, followed by careless/reckless operation, operator inexperience, operating at an unsafe speed, and failure to have a proper lookout.

Common violations of the duty of ordinary care in a maritime setting include a failure to warn against foreseeable harm, violations of “rules of the water,” such as excessive speed, failure to have proper lights, failure to yield, intoxication and others.  Owners may also be held liable under the theory of vicarious liability.  For example, an owner may be held liable for an operator’s failure to warn passengers of intended maneuvers, overloading the boat or permitting the guest to sit in a dangerous position.

Accidents involving bystanders, such as swimmers or water skiers, are typically treated in the same manner as cases involving social guests.  The law and courts where the accident occurred will generally control any lawsuits brought by injured bystanders unless the defendant boat owner asserts admiralty jurisdiction.

The laws regarding boating accident (drowning) cases are complex and include many facets of the law.  It is vital to surviving family members to seek the advice of an experienced boating fatality lawyer such as Gary A Kessler at the Law Offices of Gary A Kessler to protect your rights and those of your loved ones.

The  wrongful death attorney Gary A Kessler and the Law Offices of Gary A Kessler are compassionate and fully understand that you are attempting to cope with extreme grief and sorrow associated with the loss of a loved one in a tragic boating fatality (drowning) accident.  The Law Offices of Gary A Kessler carefully selects its wrongful death/drowning/boating fatality cases so that we may give you (the client) the substantial personal attention neccessary to obtain a successful result for your boating fatality/drowning accident case.

The Law Offices of Gary A Kessler is prepared to front all costs required for a thorough investigation and top expert witnesses to prepare for the trial of your case.  As in all wrongful death and serious personal injury cases, we advance all legal costs to prepare and present our client’s claim, and receive for our services only a percentage of what we recover for our atorney fees on their behalf.  Upon settlement our costs shall be reimbursed to us from the gross recovery.  If there is no recovery, no attorneys fees or costs are owed to our firm.

The Law Offices of Gary A Kessler has the successful track record and reputation for aggressively representing our clients for recovering tens of millions of dollars in boating fatality cases in both State and Federal Counts.